A principal, a teacher and a student entered the strange new world of Washington, D.C., this week. For those they encountered in the nation's capital, the visit by the Roosevelt School trio was a h...

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COMING SATURDAY

A principal, a teacher and a student entered the strange new world of Washington, D.C., this week. For those they encountered in the nation's capital, the visit by the Roosevelt School trio was a healthy dose of reality.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As Kenya Hernandez rode in a taxi Wednesday morning, she caught her first glimpses of the Washington Monument and the dome of the U.S. Capitol.

But Kenya, 15, seemed a bit distracted. On her mind was the daunting task before her: the opportunity to speak to a national panel of educators and policy makers was drawing near.

Roosevelt Elementary Principal Renee Sweeden was sitting next to Kenya and patted her on the leg. "You're going to be great," Sweeden said. "Just be yourself. There's no one better."

About 35 were in attendance for the hourlong hearing in the Longworth House Office Building. Among those represented were the offices of Reps. Jerry McNerney and Dennis Cardoza and Sen. Barbara Boxer. A top official from the National Council of La Raza also was on hand.

They had come to hear Kenya and three teachers from across the country - including Roosevelt's Brandy De Alba - discuss what works when it comes to a U.S. population that increasingly includes immigrants and children for whom English is a second language.

What they got from Kenya and De Alba was a taste of reality, Roosevelt style.

De Alba went first. In an emotional 10-minute speech, she advocated for schools everywhere that share Roosevelt's complex brew of race, culture and poverty. And her explanation for why she wanted to speak was simple and painful.

"We're failing," she said, her voice breaking.

She referred to the tags that dog Roosevelt, tags such as "persistently low-performing" and "far below basic."

"I know I'm failing my students, because we're labeled, and I'm labeled right along with them," she said. "We have a high poverty rate. We have 100 percent free lunch and breakfast. ... We have a high gang rate. We have a high teen pregnancy rate. We have high drug and alcohol use, and it's on our campus."

But her students also have something else, she said: potential.

And after listing their challenges, she offered one solution. She has discovered that writing works. By working with her students, she has found a way to help many of them express themselves. She's found a way to engage them in learning.

As an example, De Alba used the writing of a former student.

At the beginning, the student wrote only a few words - words De Alba unflinchingly shared with her audience at the otherwise polite gathering, words that cannot be reprinted here.

Though the student's early work barely qualified as writing, De Alba kept pushing. And within months, the student responded. De Alba read out loud some of the student's later work:

"Some people cut themselves so they won't feel the pain. Others tell themselves it will be OK. Some commit suicide. But as you're getting ready to jump ... you figure all the problems you have are all solvable and your life really is worth something."

Then it was Kenya's turn to speak in the nation's capital.

"Being born Mexican is a part of who I am," she said, struggling to keep her composure. "Being raised American is what I learned to be and what I call my gift. ... I know my family loves me for who I am and respects the fact that I am not perfect in either world but both worlds are perfect within me.

"I am Mexican-American. I speak Spanish and English. I am not what you think I am. I am not dumb. Challenge me. Don't dummy-down things for me."

The day was just beginning.

Kenya and De Alba did interviews with the Spanish-language broadcaster TeleNoticias. They visited McNerney in his office and met with Cardoza, who set up a tentative visit next week to the Roosevelt campus in southeast Stockton.

Kenya and Sweeden toured the Capitol building and briefly watched a debate in the House chambers. They posed for photographs with several visiting astronauts in the halls of the Longworth building, including two who were part of the mission involving Stockton's Jose Hernandez in 2009.

But it was the chance to be heard that meant the most to Kenya and De Alba.

"I'm constantly telling my students if they want to make change they need to speak up," De Alba said. "They need to use their voice. I am honored I had the opportunity to do that, not just by myself but with a student, to bring our perspective across country to Washington."